Seventh Heaven Surprise
by KitaraStrife
Summary: As Christmas draws closer, Cloud Strife struggles with a very difficult and delicate decision, a decision that could change not only his life but the life of someone very close to him as well. FULL SUMMARY INSIDE! btw, this is POST-Dirge of Cerberus
1. Prologue

**Seventh Heaven Surprise**

**Chapter 1:**** Prologue (a.k.a. CONFUSE THE READERS WHILE CACKLING LIKE A ****–**** sane ****–**** HOJO!! XD)**

_**SUMMARY:**__ As Christmas draws closer, Cloud Strife struggles with a very difficult and delicate decision, a decision that could change not only his life but the life of someone very close to him as well. With the help of loyal and supportive friends and allies, will Cloud make the correct choice? Read to find out. Rated for safety, implied sexual content (I can't write that sort of stuff worth CRAP, nor could I do so to save my life!) and for the mouths of Barret, Cid, Reno, and my O.C.'s __–__ Kitara Miyuki Yuri Strife and Akihito Reynolds (rarely Akihito) __–__ and __H e a r tless f a i r ytale__'s O.C. __–__ Kanako Alana Alethea Superior Strife. (HOPE I SPELLED HER NAME RIGHT, __H e a r tless__!!) Main pairing is CloudxTifa with side-pairings of KitaraxAkihito, VincentxKanako (Yuffie didn't get the balls to tell Vinny she loves him yet, Jei, so put up with it! ;P), CidxShera (they'll be at a party in one of these chapters), TsengxElena (will also be at a party in one of these chapters), ZackxAerith (they're gonna show up from the Lifestream at some point)._

Kit: Okay, soooo... this is a little late, but... this is another Christmas ficcy for everyone. This one is dedicated to my boyfriend of 2 years, "Jei" (as he is known in my yet-to-be-published-on-here "Kingdom Hearts" series fanfic and on here sometimes, the other times he is known as "Aki" or "Hito" but more commonly "Hito"), as a belated Christmas-slash-Valentine's Day gift to him. Now, I normally write my fanfics out on paper first, and _then_ type them up, but I didn't feel like doing that this time around. (XD) So, instead I'm just typing this all up from scratch. Sorry if it's sucky. I came up with the summary AFTER I typed this up, so if you find it totally rock-bottom suckish, now you know why. Though, since you're reading this, thanks for not finding the summary TOO suckish to not even consider taking a look at what's inside. I usually suck ass when it comes to writing summaries. So far, my only GOOD summary was for my currently-on-hiatus "Teen Titans" fanfic. **anime sweatdrop** Well.... ON TO DISCLAIMER!!  
Denzel: KitaraStrife does not hold any claim to the Final Fantasy franchise, its characters, or any of its merchandise. All she owns is a copy of "Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII," a copy of the "Final Fantasy X" walkthrough guidebook, and – though most say it doesn't count – a copy of "Final Fantasy X-2" for the PS2. Any O.C.'s within this one-shot are entirely owned by KitaraStrife or one of her friends (namely those of H e a r tless f a i r ytale). She does not own any songs used in this story either, the artists who sing them will be stated in the ending author's note. Also, please note that her father told her in an irrelevant-to-this-disclaimer-conversation that bars tend to close at around 2 or 3 in the morning, effectively explaining the somewhat random appearance of an N.P.C. (or Non-Player Character) from the "Final Fantasy VII" video game named Johnny. And finally, she has no pocket money to her name whatsoever, save for random change in the form of a few quarters, dimes, and multiple pennies.  
Kit: Thank you, Denzel. Have a cookie. **smiles and hands him a cookie**  
Denzel: Thanks! **runs off with cookie**  
Kit: Well... First off, if any of the songs used in here are stated during dialogue, I will most likely state the name of the artists who sings them as well. Now then... TIME TO GET TO THE STORY!!

_"words"_ means Person talking on the other end of any phone of any sort; Flashback-like sequences; Recaps in later chapters  
"words" means Regular talking_  
'words'_ means Thinking

* * *

December was a beautiful time of year. Thanksgiving was over and done with while Christmas was just around the corner. There were colorful decorations around the inside and outside of every shop and home in all the villages and towns, lights of reds, greens, blues, and rainbows strung up around the rimmings of windows and spiraling around grand trees. But what the children and delinquent teenagers loved the most about the final month of the year was not the decorations, multiple gizmos they could badger their parents and relatives into buying for them from the plethora of shops around the world, nor the delicious Christmastime cookies – sugar, gingerbread, and the occasional, and rare, chocolate chip – which the bakeries and wonderful grandmothers of Gaia always made.(1) No, none of these things mattered to the younger generations as much as one simple thing:

_**"SNOWBALL AMBUSH!!!"**_

Snow. The greatest thing in all the world – in all the universe even – to young ones.

_'Whoever said snow was great must never have lived around children.'_ These were the thoughts of a spiky-haired, blond man with a huge sword and a very kickass-looking motorcycle as he was pelted left and right with snowballs by the children and teens of Kalm Town as they threw perfectly-shaped snowball after perfectly-shaped snowball at him, deflecting the majority of the icy cold ammunition with his trusty sword. _'Now I'm going to have to clean off First Tsurugi before rust sets in. Damned weather.'_

Cloud Strife, two-time hero of Gaia and now delivery man, was, after a week, on his way back home to Edge from delivering a Christmas present for someone's little girl in Kalm – the last of his deliveries before the holidays – and was being attacked by hoodlums with icy cold snowballs as their ammo. Though he admired their fighting spirit, he still did not condone their activity of attacking passersby in or on their vehicles as they drove by, much less the savior of their world. If he was Sephiroth— He cut that thought short right then and there, mentally scolding himself for even _starting_ to think such a thing. No one deserved to be reminded of the man they all used to consider a hero until he turned into a genocidal killer. Suddenly, his thoughts were detoured as his cell phone rang. Continuing to speed along the streets – being wary of red lights and civilians in the crosswalks – he answered. "Strife Delivery Service. You name it, we—."

_"Hey, Cloud. It's been a while since I've seen you."_ The voice on the other end of the line was Reeve Tuesti, leader of the World Restoration Organization – the W.R.O. – and former Head of Urban Development for the Shinra Electric Power Company, not to mention former operator of Cloud's undercover spy-turned-companion named Cait Sith over 4 years ago now.(2) _"When are you getting back to the bar?"_

"I'm on my way right now," Cloud replied as he blocked another snowball to his head with First Tsurugi. "I just dropped off the final Christmas gift to a family in Kalm and am currently getting attacked by little kids and their mountains of snowballs." He grunted as he slashed yet another snowball in half.

_"Little kids you say? Hm... look up right now,"_ Reeve told him, causing Cloud to knit his eyebrows together in confusion.

"What?" he said, doing as was asked of him.

_**"AIM FOR HIS FACE!!!"**_ was the shouted, albeit laughed, command to all the children and teenagers ambushing Cloud from a very familiar voice: Reeve's. From the rooftop of a nearby bakery, Reeve had the perfect view of Cloud's route through the city – with the use of a pair of binoculars, that is – and from this same rooftop was where he was giving the young ones their commands via walkie-talkie, a smirk evident on his face.

"Reeve, you're getting dropped from Cid's airship after this!" was all the swordsman was able to growl into his phone before he hung up and slipped it back inside his pocket so it would be safe from short circuiting as just about every snowball thrown hit his face, successfully knocking him off of Fenrir and into a snowbank; the ex-SOLDIER grudgingly admitted that the children had damn good aim. One minute later, the command to cease fire was given and Reeve's laughter filled the air as he drew closer to Cloud.

"Sorry about that, Cloud. Tifa called and told me your last stop would be in Kalm somewhere and that I should round up the kids and teens to ambush you," he chuckled as he helped the blond to his feet while one of the teens wheeled Fenrir over to where the two older men were standing.

"Here's your bike, Mr. Strife," said the teen, one who had shoulder-length shaggy brown hair and was wearing just a plain black hoodie with an oozing-blood skull emblem to represent the band "Blood Skulls" that the swordsman's little sisters were apart of – one being a back-up singer and bass guitarist, the other being the lead singer and lead guitarist – over a red tee that Cloud assumed held the same band emblem – only in black – with worn out blue jeans and black sneakers—not at all the sort of clothing one would wear in the winter; Cloud guessed the boy was an orphan of some sort.

"Thanks." Cloud got on Fenrir and looked at the kid with a vague smile. "And just call me Cloud, okay?"

"Yessir, Mr. Cloud!" the boy replied with a smile and nod before he ran off back to his friends, happy that his idol had even talked to him.

Shaking his head at being called "Mr." again, Cloud looked at Reeve once again. "You're still going to dangle out of Cid's airship for listening to Tifa." With that, he zoomed off, throwing a snowball of his own over his shoulder at the slightly bearded man, hitting him dead in the face and successfully making him fall backwards into the same snowbank he had just helped Cloud out of only moments before.

**FEARTHESCENECHANGEFONTORZACKWILLSCREAM"ZACK ATTACK!!"ANDGLOMPYOU!!!!!!!!!**

"Tifa, when's Cloud getting back?" Denzel asked, helping the brunette woman with baking cookies by setting a plate of them on the counter.

"Yeah, we haven't seen him in over a week!" added Marlene, also helping Tifa by cutting the dough into the Christmasy shapes everyone knew and loved: Christmas trees, bells, Santa Clauses, reindeer, angels, snowmen with top hats, stars, sleighs, and many more.

Tifa smiled down at the 11-year-old boy she and Cloud saw as a sort of son and the 9-year-old girl she saw as a sort of _much_ younger little sister as she wiped flour off on the Christmas apron she was wearing.(3) "I don't know, you guys. But whenever he gets back, he'll be wanting some of these cookies, right?"

"Uh-huh!" the two children replied with a smile of their own, both holding up their hands in a high-five motion that wasn't meant to be a high-five but more of a way of agreeing to what the older woman had said.

"Alright then, Marlene, once you're done making this batch of cookies for me, why don't you get started on decorating the ones that have already cooled off? Denzel, you can help by mixing food coloring in with the vanilla frosting to make different colored frostings, okay?" Tifa ordered with a smile, switching out a tray full of freshly baked gingerbread men, women, children, and snowmen (Marlene's idea) from the oven with a tray of freshly cut sugar cookie trees, bells, angels, and stars.

"Okay!" the two kids said, hopping right to their newly assigned jobs, Denzel of course piling the freshly baked gingerbread cookies onto a plate first.

Around one hour and thirty minutes later, the three of them heard the sound of an engine pull into the garage before it cut off, followed by a kickstand being kicked down to hold up a two-wheeled vehicle. A moment later, the door was opened and out of the garage stepped Cloud, goggles still over his eyes and clothing sopping wet.

"Thanks a lot for the ambush, Tifa," he playful growled as he peeled the biking goggles away from his face, sending a playful glare towards his childhood friend, the woman he loved with all his heart. Though his feelings had been mislead during their first adventure to stop his former idol from destroying the planet, Cloud had eventually realized that he loved Tifa and not Aerith.(4) Speaking of which, the hazel-eyed brunette woman was now currently giggling quietly at his sopping wet appearance.

"I hope they didn't hurt you too badly, Cloud. Because then you wouldn't get to partake of these wonderful cookies," she giggled, pointing to one of the plates with fully decorated cookies, courtesy of Marlene and Denzel, sitting next to the many boxes of already-finished cookies the three of them had already made over the last few weeks. Cloud's eyes followed the path of where her finger was pointing and immediately lit up like the Christmas lights strung around four synthetic aluminum trees set up in the bar area of their building.(5) Denzel and Marlene stifled their laughter at his wide-eyed look behind their hands, glancing at each other to quietly exchange some sort of childish message with their eyes.

After staring at the cookies for a full minute, Cloud subtly shook his head and cleared his throat. "I'll be back down in a little bit; taking a shower and changing out of these before I get sick," he stated as he headed for the back stairway that lead upstairs so he could take a shower.

"You can't get sick, Cloud!" Denzel called after him. "You're too powerful to get sick!"

Just inside the doorway to the stairs, Cloud stopped and slightly turned his head to smile – in his own way, at least – and reply, "Thanks, Denz." Then he was headed up the stairs and out of sight.

Tifa watched the stairwell for a few seconds longer after Cloud had disappeared from view, having caught the slightest glimps of what she hoped was not regret for a past event.(6) _'Please let him be okay, Aerith. Please help him to stop blaming himself for your death,'_ she silently pleaded, briefly closing her eyes so as to keep tears of pain, of hurt, from leaking out and worrying the kids before she turned her attention back to them.(7) "All right, you two. Whaddya say we hurry and finish these cookies up for everyone tonight."

"You got it, Tifa!" Denzel replied with a smile and nod of his head, Marlene doing the same just as the timer for the oven went off.

**FEARTHESCENECHANGEFONTORZACKWILLSCREAM"ZACK ATTACK!!"ANDGLOMPYOU!!!!!!!!!**

While Tifa and the kids finished with the cookies, the shower was running upstairs. Standing under the water in his birthday suit, Cloud leant his head against the shower wall, the water splashing down on him from behind.

_"You can't get sick, Cloud!" Denzel called after him. "You're too powerful to get sick!"_ Denzel's words kept playing in his mind, over and over, again and again.

"If only you knew how powerless I felt sometimes, Denzel," he said to himself, eyes closed. "If only you knew, then you wouldn't have said that." He stood like that for what felt like hours but was only five minutes, just letting the water melt away his aches and pains before he picked his head up and began to wash his hair.

"Zack... how the hell do I tell her? What if she doesn't like me?" he asked to the air, knowing that he'd somehow hear his old best friend's voice – whether it be suddenly showing up in the field of flowers fully clothed when he's truly naked or just the sound of Zack's voice, to him, echoing around the bathroom.

* * *

1. HEY! I love chocolate chip cookies! Sadly, they are the ONLY cookies I can make from scratch with minimal help from my mom. (XD) I know, sad but true. But don't get me wrong, sugar cookies and gingerbread cookies are great, too! We just didn't really have the gingerbread ones this year for some reason. **sad face** Oh well. THERE'S ALWAYS NEXT YEAR! (XD)  
2. A) I say that Reeve's last name should be pronounced "TOO-sti" like "Tuesday" instead of "Too-es-tie", considering the fact that if you take off the "-ti" at the end of his name and replace it with "-day" you get the word "Tuesday". ... Please tell me I am NOT the only person who realized that? (-.-) B) Yeah.... I'm saying this is based AFTER the events of "D.o.C." so Vincent's already saved the planet once himself. Gaia has TWO heroes to its name! (XD)  
3. Taking into consideration that – at least to me – it seemed to be around sometime in the summer that Denzel met Reeve and told him his background at Johnny's Heaven in "Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children – The Novel," I'm going to say that Denzel's B-Day is somewhere after that, considering that this fanfic is taking place during Christmastime. Also, this would explain why Marlene is now being called a 9-year-old, since she was 4 in the video game and 6 in the movie. Hey, the game never has Dyne state WHEN her birthday is, so I'm taking some creative license here!!  
4. Those of you who say that Cloud and Aerith is canon, YOU CAN ALL GO DIE FOR ALL I CARE! That's right, I just said to go die. DIE IN A FIERY PIT OF HELL WHERE YOU BELONG! AERITH IS ZACK'S GIRL, YOU HEAR ME!!! **takes deep, calming breaths** Sorry... I just hate those who say that the canon pairing is "CloudxAerith" instead of "CloudxTifa" and "ZackxAerith". It makes me SICK! **dry heaves** Honestly, CloudxAerith has to be the ONLY het pairing that I will ever despise with a passion so far. I don't know why, but it is.  
5. If any of you watched the Charlie Brown Christmas special this past Christmas, you may have seen the crappy aluminum Christmas trees they had in there. Aluminum Christmas trees have come a LONG way since that time and actually look like REAL trees once set up nowadays. I should know, we have two in my house: one for upstairs set in front of the window so everyone outside can see it once it's lit up at night and one downstairs that my big sis usually decorates since she pretty much _lives_ down here (it's where our computer is **anime sweatdrop**) but I got to help her out with the decorating this year, so some of the decorations on it this year are mine, but most of them are hers.  
6. For those that might be too tired to have payed close attention to this line, too "I don't give a shit; just let me keep reading this fanfic!", too lazy to remember, or those who just plain forgot, the words "regret for a past event" is just my shitty way of referencing back to when Sephiroth gutted Aerith (Aeris for those who prefer her "correct" North American translation name **rolls eyes**) from behind with Cloud just standing there, thus effectively making him feel like he couldn't do a damn thing to stop it, like he was powerless. Perfectly sensible reaction to someone saying that you're "too powerful" for anything bad that happens to someone who is NOT enhanced with Mako to happen to you when you have felt powerless in the past, right? ............ **only hears crickets as a response** Yeah... that's what I thought I'd get. **sulking and growing mushrooms in a dark, dismal corner** This has been my even SHITTIER way of explaining the words "regret for a past event."  
7. And THAT was my even _SHITTIER_ than anything else attempt at being even a _little_ poetic or whatever you want to call it. **gags at her pitiful excuse of word phrasing**

Kit: Okay... I was originally planning on having this go a LOT longer than it did, but this chapter was getting too damn long for my tastes. Hope you enjoyed this "prologue" and want to read more. I'm too lazy to say any more, so I'll actually let Yuffie say something for once. **reaches into Hammerspace and pulls out an icepack to press against her head while Yuffie talks**  
Yuffie: Read, review, and stay tuned for the next chapter!! Flames will be used to keep KitaraStrife warm while she types the rest of this story up in her basement.  
Kit: ... **quirks an eyebrow at the self-proclaimed Great Ninja** You're hoping to get some form of sugar out of this, aren't you?  
Yuffie: Nope! **smiles innocently**  
Kit: You're hoping for Materia instead, huh? -.-  
Yuffie: Absolutely not! **smiles a smile that Kit immediately knows is false**  
Kit: You ain't gonna get any fucking Materia from me, bitch. I don't have any, anyways. But you can have a cookie or two. **holds out a plate of chocolate chip cookies to Yuffie while secretly hoping she'll just take the entire plate**  
Yuffie: **huffs and crosses her arms for a minute before swiping not only the cookies but the plate as well and running for it** I'M HOLDING THE PLATE RANSOM FOR MATERIA!! **dives out a window and pulls the strings to a parachute**  
Kit: **watches her leave** Tch! Good riddance. I hated that plate; it was a ceramic light pink with darker pink flowers on it. No offense to Aerith, but that is just WAY too pink for my tastes! XP Anyways, like the annoying ninja-bitch said, read and review and stay tuned for the next chapter! I need to get my ass to bed already. **teleports herself away**  
Aerith: ...I'm stealing that plate!


	2. Tifa and Kanako HATE When Kit Plots

**CHAPTER 2:**** Tifa and Kanako HATE When Kit Plots**

_**SUMMARY:**__ As Christmas draws closer, Cloud Strife struggles with a very difficult and delicate decision, a decision that could change not only his life but the life of someone very close to him as well. With the help of loyal and supportive friends and allies, will Cloud make the correct choice? Read to find out. Rated for safety, implied sexual content (I can't write that sort of stuff worth C__RA__P, nor could I do so to save my life!) and for the mouths of Barret, Cid, Reno, and my O.C.'s __–__ Kitara Miyuki Yuri Strife and Akihito Reynolds (rarely Akihito) __–__ and __H e a r tless f a i r ytale__'s O.C. __–__ Kanako Alana Alethea Superior Strife. (HOPE I SPELLED HER NAME RIGHT, __H e a r tless__!!) Main pairing is CloudxTifa with side-pairings of KitaraxAkihito, VincentxKanako (Yuffie didn't get the balls to tell Vinny she loves him yet, Jei, so put up with it! ;P), CidxShera (they'll be at a party in one of these chapters), TsengxElena (will also be at a party in one of these chapters), ZackxAerith (they're gonna show up from the Lifestream at some point)._

**Thanks to lostsoulMiakis, vx-Luna-xv, and anyone else for alerting this story! You kick ass!!**

**Thanks to all who reviewed the first chapter!! I would've replied to your reviews, but FanFiction was being a b****it****ch with the log-in system thingy for TWO DAYS!! **_**TWO DAYS!!!**_** WHAT THE H****EL****L'S UP WITH THAT, MODERATORS, WHOEVER YOU ARE?! That's just not good, because that means we authors can't post our new stories and/or chapters, nor can we receive reviews because nobody can access the review page!!!**

Kit: Okay... I was originally just gonna have this thing be a one-shot, then that idea turned into this fic being a two-shot, now I have absolutely NO CLUE as to how many damned chapters I'm gonna make this thing! All I currently know is that I was making chapter 1 way too damn long – **sweatdrop** – hence the little recap at the beginning of this chapter. Anyways... DENZEL!  
Denzel: **was right behind Kit** Yeah?  
Kit: WAUGH! O.O **jumps seven feet in the air and clings to the ceiling as she looks down** Denzel? PLEASE don't do that ever again! T.T  
Denzel: **chuckles** Sorry, Kit.  
Kit: **lets go of the ceiling and lands on her back... HARD** ...Ow. I think I just messed my back up even more. **rubs her stupid scoliosis-ed back to soothe the pain**  
Denzel: **holds up a glowing green Materia** Want me to cast an Esuna??  
Kit: O.o How do you have Materia, Mini-Cloud??  
Denzel: Because I managed to sneak it away from Yuffie. And I'm not a mini-Cloud!  
Kit: To me you are, now hush. Anyways... sure, cast an Esuna.  
Denzel: **smiles before screwing his face up in concentration for 2 minutes** ESUNA!  
Kit: **watches as a prettily glowing green light moves behind her to soothe her back before disappearing a minute later** ...Hm... **rubs her back a little** Sweet. Thank you, Denz. Now then... feel up to doing the disclaimer for me again??  
Denzel: Do I have to??  
Kit: Hey, I don't care if you just re-read everything off the cue-card from last time or use a random tape-recorder that you had on ya last chapter and used to record what ya said last time. Then again, if you don't wanna do it, I can just get Marlene to do it this time. **shrugs** I don't really care, so long as someone does the disclaimer.  
Denzel: How did you know I had a tape-recorder on me last chapter?? **pulls said object out of his pocket**  
Kit: **jaw drops as her eyes bug out** I actually didn't. I was just being random.  
Denzel: So I can still use this?? **holds up object**  
Kit: Yeah, sure, go ahead.  
Denzel: **presses PLAY on the tape-recorder**  
_Tape-Recorded Denzel:__ KitaraStrife__ does not hold any claim to the Final Fantasy franchise, its characters, or any of its merchandise. All she owns is a copy of "Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII," a copy of the "Final Fantasy X" walkthrough guidebook, and __–__ though most say it doesn't count __– a copy of "Final Fantasy X-2" for the PS2. Any O.C.'s within this one-shot are entirely owned by __KitaraStrife__ or one of her friends (namely those of __H e a r tless f a i r ytale__). She does not own any songs used in this story either, the artists who sing them will be stated in the ending author's note. Also, please note that her father told her in an irrelevant-to-this-disclaimer-conversation that bars tend to close at around 2 or 3 in the morning, effectively explaining the somewhat random appearance of an N.P.C. (or Non-Player Character) from the "Final Fantasy VII" video game named Johnny. And finally, she has no pocket money to her name whatsoever, save for random change in the form of a few quarters, dimes, and multiple pennies._  
Denzel: **presses STOP on the tape-recorder**  
Kit: Thank you, Denzel. Have another cookie. **smiles and hands him a cookie just like last time**  
Denzel: Thanks! **stuffs tape-recorder back in his pocket and runs off with cookie again**  
Kit: Okay, everyone. The O.C.'s in this chapter that are MINE are _Kitara Miyuki Yuri Strife_ and _Akihito Reynolds_. _Kanako Alana Alethea Superior Strife_ is (c) H e a r tless f a i r ytale of this very site. Other than all of that, the band mentioned last chapter under the title of "Blood Skulls" is also (c) ME and... well.... that's about it, except that this chapter is DEFINITELY longer than the last one! Now then... ENJOY THE CHAPTER!! **runs off to hit her head against a wall for how suckish and LONG this opening author's note was**

_"words"_ means Person talking on the other end of any phone of any sort; Flashback-like sequences; Recaps in later chapters  
"words" means Regular talking_  
'words'_ means Thinking

* * *

_RECAP:__ While Tifa and the kids finished with the cookies, the shower was running upstairs. Standing under the water in his birthday suit, Cloud leant his head against the shower wall, the water splashing down on him from behind._

"You can't get sick, Cloud!" Denzel called after him. "You're too powerful to get sick!"_ Denzel's words kept playing in his mind, over and over, again and again._

_"If only you knew how powerless I felt sometimes, Denzel," he said to himself, eyes closed. "If only you knew, then you wouldn't have said that." He stood like that for what felt like hours but was only five minutes, just letting the water melt away his aches and pains before he picked his head up and began to wash his hair._

_"Zack... how the hell do I tell her? What if she doesn't like me?" he asked to the air, knowing that he'd somehow hear his old best friend's voice __–__ whether it be suddenly showing up in the field of flowers fully clothed when he's truly naked or just the sound of Zack's voice, to him, echoing around the bathroom._

**FEARTHESCENECHANGEFONTORZACKWILLSCREAM"ZACK ATTACK!!"ANDGLOMPYOU!!!!!!!!!**

Five minutes later, Cloud stepped out of the shower, wrapping a towel around his waist and heading for his room to get changed.(1) Meanwhile, Tifa and the kids had just finished up all the cookies downstairs.

"Phew! That's the last of them," said Tifa, wiping her brow of the collected sweat from cooking all day. "Why don't you two go see if Cloud's out of the shower yet and get washed up if he is."

"Okay, Tifa," replied Marlene, smiling as she grabbed Denzel's hand and ran upstairs with the 11-year-old smiling as he ran after her.

"TIFA! WE'RE BACK!!" Tifa turned around to see the door between the kitchen and the bar area being pushed open and an 18-year-old girl with long blonde-black-silver-brown-and-orange layered hair tipped hot pink, bangs of red tipped turquoise, and a pair of dangling earrings – both in the shape of the skull-and-cross bones only with a black on the right and a red on the left – walk in wearing a form-fitting black tee over a three-quarters-sleeved red fishnet shirt, fingerless black fighting gloves on both hands, nails painted a blood red with randomly-placed white dots, comfortably form-fitting dark gray jeans, and red-and-black sneakers. She was followed by another 18-year-old female with long black hair layered with brown and silver and bangs of purple tipped red wearing a spiked black choker necklace around her neck; a low-cut and midriff-showing red tank top with black fishnet around the middle of the top; a short striped jacket with purple-green-blue-and-black stripes overtop her tank; a black fishnet arm wrap on her left arm with a red one on her right; a spiked green bracelet on her left wrist with a purple one on her right; a fingerless glove with the same colors and design as her jacket below the bracelet on her left hand, another glove exactly identical to it on her right except that it went overtop the fishnet until just below her elbow, the spiked purple bracelet overtop the glove; a red leather mini-skirt with a studded belt of a darker shade around her waist and dark purple shorts-like legging with black fishnet at the bottom hems underneath the skirt; striped knee-high socks with the same design scheme as her gloves on her legs; and finally dark purple zip-up, calf-high boots with a spiked dark blue belt around the ankle and near the top with a black fishnet design between the belts on her feet. A 19-year-old male – taller than the girls – with shoulder-length spiky black hair highlighted a mix of blue, blond, and brown, wearing a black hoodie with the "Blood Skulls" band emblem emblazoned upon it, gloves with Cloud's wolf symbol on them in silver, blue jeans, and black boots following her. The girls both had a guitar over their backs – one a bass and the other a regular electric – while the boy had a set of drumsticks in his back pocket.

"Hey, how'd the concert go?" Tifa asked, smiling as she started cleaning up the mess she, Marlene, and Denzel had made that day.

"It was great! Everyone loved us!!" the shorter of the girls immediately replied, bouncing around the kitchen and helping Tifa clean up after setting her guitar down. "Though, one of the fanboys tried to jump on stage," she added, pausing in the process of carrying a large mixing bowl over to the counter to be washed with a thoughtful look on her face as she seemed to stare off into space.

"Yeah, but Hito-kun took care of him by chucking a drumstick at his head," the older female finished with a small chuckle, placing cookie-cutters of multiple shapes and sizes in the sink after setting her bass guitar next to the other girl's, sending "Hito" a quick and faint smile. He just nodded and said, "He shouldn't have been trying to get on the stage in the first place."

"Yeah, well stop taking our business away from us, yo." The girls looked up to see Reno walk in just then with Rude following right behind him.

"It's not my fault you're slow to react," Hito jeered, turning away from the two Turks to start washing the dishes.(2)

"Reno, don't even _bother_ trying to continue this petty argument with Akihito, or I'm gonna have an out-of-universe experience and go Haruko Haruhara on your mofo ass, ya hear me!" growled the girl with turquoise-tipped red bangs, death glaring the red-head with the challenge of defying her in her currently cat-like red eyes that could change to glowing Mako-enhanced green at any second.

"Yes, ma'am, Kit-Kat!" the red-head replied with horrified wide eyes of his own, knowing that when the girl's eyes changed colors and the pupils were like a cat's that he had better listen or he wouldn't be going on any missions for _quite_ a while. Not to mention that he always suddenly felt like he was going to either wet himself, crap his pants, or both every time she did that.

Kit's eyes turned back to a calming hazel with normal pupils as she grinned. "Good Turk! Now then, go get our stuff outta the van, will ya?" she ordered, mainly to Reno since she knew Rude would do it anyway, as she picked up a dishtowel and began to dry the dishes.

"Kitara Miyuki Yuri Strife!" Tifa reprimanded, a sharp glare sent in the taller girl's direction.(3)

With a sigh, Kit added, "Please?"

"Of course," Rude replied with a smirk and nod of his head, grabbing Reno's shirt collar as he headed back out to the van, dragging his partner along with him.

"UGH! WHY do we have to have the Turks be our bodyguards-slash-bouncers again?" groaned Kit, handing Kanako a cookie-cutter to put away. "I mean, Hito can handle any retards that try to get a little too 'fresh'—" here she used air-quotes—"around us better than any Turk can, no offense to Tseng and Rude."

"What about Elena?" Tifa asked, putting away a bowl she had just dried, knowing full well that of any of the Turks it was Reno that Kit loved to pick on the most.

"Blonde-and-flat doesn't really have any special skills aside from her 'Googley-eyed-for-my-boss-named-Tseng-who-just-happens-to-be-standing-right-behind-you' stare attack," Kanako scoffed. Tifa rolled her eyes; she should have known that where it was Reno for Kit, Kanako loved to pick on Elena the most.

"So, Tifa? Any luck yet?" asked Kit, changing to subject to something she knew Akihito would keep quiet about as she, Kanako and Tifa talked about it. Her only response was a heavy sigh of disappointment as the older woman leaned against the edge of the stove.

"None at all. I thought you said he would ask by now?"

"I thought he would, too!"

"Maybe he needs some... persuasion." All three girls glanced at the boy in amazement, not expecting him to throw in his two cents on the topic all three thought he would never talk about with them.

"Wha-whaddja just say, Hito?" Kit asked, the first of the three girls to snap back to her senses, albeit with her jaw still hanging a bit.

"Maybe he needs some persuasion to ask," was the calm reply the drummer offered. Tifa, Kanako, and Kitara all looked at each other for a minute before nodding their heads.

"You're right, I think he does, Akihito." Tifa smile at the half-Wutaian, half-Nibelheimian teen that has always looked up to Cloud and probably always would, no matter what the two-time hero of Gaia happened to do.(4) ...Well, unless it happened to be something he disapproved of, then Akihito probably wouldn't idolize him anymore, but this authoress digresses. "The only problem is _how_ to persuade him. Any ideas, girls?" She turned to Kit and Kanako, both of whom had stopped drying and putting away the dishes just like Tifa herself, all three subconsciously knowing Akihito – knowing all along that they probably would eventually – would finish drying and putting them away anyway.

"Hmm.... a song maybe??" Kanako suggested.

"What sort of song, Kan?" pondered the brunette as she leaned against the counter, finger on her chin in thought.

The kitchen was silent for a couple minutes as the girls thought, the only noises being Akihito drying and putting away the dishes just like the girls subconsciously knew he would. Then...

"GOT IT!" shouted out Kit with a snap of her fingers, startling her female companions and making her boyfriend glance at her as he put away the big mixing bowl.

"Well, what is it, Kitara?"

"Yeah, tell us, Kit, tell us!" Kanako urged, bouncing slightly, as she and Tifa both leaned more towards the turquoise-tipped red banged girl.(5)

"Ever heard of a song called "Into the Night" by Sado Kuroija?" she asked with a smirk, her face somehow changing into that of a humanoid cat's.(6)

Both Tifa and Kanako looked at each other before looking back at the other girl. "Yeah," they said in unison, the lilt of suspicion in their voices as they waited for Kit to explain.

"It will all be clear later," the 18-year-old bassist replied mysteriously, waving her hand in the air to dismiss anymore questions. "First, do you still dance at all, Tifa?"

With a quirked eyebrow, Tifa replied, "Yeah. Why?" _'I don't really like where this seems to be going, nor do I think I _want_ to know where this is going!'_

"Perfect." Kit's eyes turned from a calm hazel to a mischievous purple, scaring not only Tifa, but also Kanako who couldn't seem to penetrate her adopted older sister's thoughts to see what she was thinking which was a huge rarity. "Hito? Do you think Reno and Rude have gotten any of our crap out of the van yet??" she asked, turning to her boyfriend who was now completely done putting away the dishes and just leaning against the wall in a perfect emulation of Cloud.

"Probably only the amps. Why?"

"Oh, no reason." Smiling cryptically, Kitara told him of her plans via telepathy while still keeping Kanako out, catching his eyes darting to the staircase for a split-second before they were retrained upon her face once again. "We just need to get back to our practice room for a few hours before the party tonight."

"What exactly are you up to now, Kit?" inquired a slightly scared Tifa, taking a single unconscious step backwards.

"Just trust me on this, Tif, please," implored the girl with multi-colored hair as she grabbed the hands of her little sister and hopefully soon-to-be older sister-in-law and led them out the door and to the van, Hito following behind them.(7) Outside, the four of them saw Reno and Rude were just setting down the last of the amps from the large vehicle.

"Sorry to do this to ya, boys, but ya need to reload 'em!" Grinning at the squawk of indignation from the red-haired and tattooed man, Kit led the group in piling inside before she helped their "bodyguards" get the amplifiers reloaded by telekinetically lifting the heavy pieces of equipment into the air and into the trunk.(8)

"I hate it when she does that, yo."

"You know you still like her, Reno," teased the bald man with a small smirk towards his slightly shorter partner as the two climbed in back and shut the doors.

"Hang on to those amplifiers, boys!" Kanako called back as she started the engine. "It's gonna be a bumpy ride! _YEEHAW!!_"

As the van pulled out into the eerily non-existent traffic, Reno could be heard screaming one thing as they sped towards the little warehouse Rufus Shinra allows them to use for their practices so long as two of his top Turks remain the band's bodyguards, that thing being _**"WHOOOOOAAAAA!!!!!!!!"**_

* * *

1. Does anyone know if Cloud and Tifa share that room that Reno and Rude put them in after finding them in Aerith's church in the movie?? **is confuzzled**  
2. Hey, there is NOTHING wrong with a guy doing the dishes! My dad does them almost all the time at my house! Then again, that's mainly due to me and my big sis being too lazyassed to do them ourselves. ...At least I'll rinse my dishes (most of the time) before just setting them on the counter, unlike my sis!! (DX)  
3. Kitara Miyuki Yuri Strife, as stated in the full summary set above the beginning author's note, is my O.C. (or "Original Character" for those who don't/didn't know). Her name means "North Sun Snow Lily" when you ignore the last name. "Kita" means "north;" the "ra" at the end of "Kitara" is a little bit of Egyptian thrown in, hence the "sun" part; "Miyuki" is one of two names that means "snow" – the other being just plain "Yuki," but I didn't want to steal a **"Fruits Basket"** character name – for girls in Japan; and "Yuri" means "lily."  
4. I have seen it spelled "Wutain" which, thanks to all the fanfictions I've read with it spelled like that, _looks_ the most correct to me. But in my mind... totally different story! My mind says that any person from or any descendant of someone from Wutai should be called a "Wutaian", kinda like how anyone from or anyone that is a descendant of someone from Hawaii is called a "Hawaiian." ...Yeah, my mind's effed up sometimes. So sue me; this is about the time that I continued writing during major crunch time on my Graduation Project, so I have the RIGHT to be a little pushy on my opinions of things! **:P** All that, and I even made up a word for those from Nibelheim. XD My mind REALLY needs to get to sleep, doesn't it? -.-"  
5. Okay... that sounded SO WRONG, but I was writing that part at 12:25 A.M. during the same time I wrote the 4th chapter note, not to mention I was running low on energy. _Bite me, b__it__ches!_  
6. Yeah... um... I just went with how I thought "Chad Kroeger's" last name would be pronounced in Japanese. XD And his first name in here is "Sado" because that's how Ichigo Kurosaki of **"Bleach"** mispronounces "Chad's" family name when he first meets him. XD Also, for Kit's face, pretty much just look up the anime **"FLCL"** and pay close attention to the character called "Haruko Haruhara"; pink-haired alien bitch is crazy, but I love her and know only _one_ person who would be PERFECT to play her if they ever made a live-action version of **"FLCL"** or even a live-action movie: my best friend, "Shiori"! XD (yeah, "Shiori" ain't her real name, but that's what I'm gonna be calling her on here, so BLEH! ;P) Also, I'm taking a plot device that practically EVERY ff7 fanfic author uses to explain away Kit's ability to change her eyes to those of Sephiroth and the Remnants _and_ change her face to look like a humanoid cat: BLAME THE MAKO!! XD **roflao**  
7. Kit's nickname for Tifa here is pronounced "Teef". I've seen it spelled that way, but I wanted to be different. ;P  
8. Once again, BLAME THE MAKO!! XD

Kit: Well, there you go, everyone! That's chapter 2 for ya! I _was_ gonna make it a little longer, but I decided not to.  
Reno: Do you enjoy torturing me?!  
Kit: Dude, Reno? You're the comic relief of Final Fantasy 7; of COURSE I enjoy torturing you, just not as much as some other fanfic authors out there on the net.  
Reno: And just what do you mean by that, yo?  
Kit: That I could torture you MUCH more and MUCH worse if you give me enough reason to, Turk. Now then, could you do the ending author's note thing for me?? I'll give you a cookie.  
Reno: Make it two cookies and the first payment being up front and I'll do it, yo.  
Kit: Ugh! FINE! **gives him one cookie** Now say the ending author's note thing already, Brown Eyebrows!  
Reno: **almost chokes on the cookie** MY EYEBROWS AIN'T BROWN, YO!  
Kit: **holds up a mirror** Oh reallay?  
Reno: **looks in mirror and eyes widen in horror** SHIT, YO!  
Kit: That's what I thought. Now SAY IT!  
Reno: Read and Review so I can get my second cookie, yo!  
Kit: Oh, you don't want your cookie now? Okay then! BARRET! HAVE A COOKIE! **tosses the big black man the cookie**  
Reno: **O.O** NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! **dives after the cookie but somehow manages to hit a pole**  
Barret: **catches the cookie with a smirk and a laugh** Ha ha! Serves him righ'! **happily munches the cookie**  
Kit: XD Poor Reno. Oh well! Anyways, below you will find a list of the hair colors that are in Kitara and Kanako's hair and their meanings. I got them offa a quiz thingy on **quizilla . com** and even saved and uploaded the pictures that accompanied the descriptions (whose grammar I slightly edited for this fanfic) onto my photobucket account. LATER, EVERYONE!!

**KITARA MIYUKI YURI STRIFE AND KANAKO ALANA ALETHEA SUPERIOR STRIFE'S HAIR COLOR(S), MEANING(S), AND WHO HAS THE COLOR(S) IN THEIR HAIR:**  
_BLACK_  
You would have black hair! You've a strong sense of justice and you're many-sided. Friendly and angry at the same moment. As a loyal friend you would fight to the death to save your friends. (Both)  
_BLONDE_  
Your hair would be blonde! A natural beauty with no fear. Blonde people have principles and nothing can change their minds. They are sensitive and can become easily sad and it's hard to get them out of this depression. (Kit)  
_BROWN_  
Your hair would be brown! People with brown hair are purposeful, proper can work hard to achieve a goal in life. And they hate criticism! (Both)  
_ORANGE_  
Your hair would be orange! It looks like fire if you run, and you run a lot because you're energetic, cheeky and your temper is hot like a volcano. You can be nice if you want but we shouldn't piss you off... (Kit)  
_PINK_  
Your hair would be pink! Pink hair is the hair of the romantic and innocent. You love daydreaming and have fun with your friends. Sometimes you wear a mask to not show when you're sad. (Kit)  
_PURPLE_  
Your hair would be purple! We can call you glamour girl! You're passionately with a classical elegance and a very strong will! Purple heads enjoy attention over all! (Kanako)  
_RED_  
Your hair would be red! Physically and mentally strong. Some people say that you're a Tomboy but you've no problems with that, because whether you do sports, fight or argue you always look so damn sexy! (Both)  
_TURQUOISE_  
Your hair would be aqua green! You would own the hair of the creative, honest and also moody people. You say what you think and you don't care what the others say about you. (Kit)  
_SILVER_  
Your hair would be silver! You're in every way special. Not moody but you can change your face from soft and friendly to rejecting and evil in seconds. You're careful in who you trust but then you're a great friend. (Both)


	3. Warehouse, Part 1

**CHAPTER 3:**** Warehouse, Part 1**

_**SUMMARY:**__ As Christmas draws closer, Cloud Strife struggles with a very difficult and delicate decision, a decision that could change not only his life but the life of someone very close to him as well. With the help of loyal and supportive friends and allies, will Cloud make the correct choice? Read to find out. Rated for safety, implied sexual content (I can't write that sort of stuff worth CRAP, nor could I do so to save my life!) and for the mouths of Barret, Cid, Rno, and my O.C.'s _–_ Kitara Miyuki Yuri Strife and Akihito Reynolds (rarely Akihito) _–_ and __H e a r tless f a i r ytale__'s O.C. _–_ Kanako Alana Alethea Superior Strife. (HOPE I SPELLED HER NAME RIGHT, __H e a r tless__!!) Main pairing is CloudxTifa with side-pairings of KitaraxAkihito, VincentxKanako (Yuffie didn't get the balls to tell Vinny she loves him yet, Jei, so put up with it! **;P**), CidxShera (they'll be at a party in one of these chapters), TsengxElena (will also be at a party in one of these chapters), ZackxAerith (they're gonna show up from the Lifestream at some point)._

**Thanks to anyone who alerted this story! You kick ass!!**

**Thanks to LovelessGenesis and Kaospyri for reviewing the last chapter!!**

Kit: Well, I'm back again! And I really hope everyone's loving this story so far! I know that I meant for this to be out either before or just a LITTLE after Valentine's Day of 2009, but that plan SERIOUSLY backfired on me what with my stupid Graduation Project (Pennsylvania's a real bitch for having those damned things! DX) and school work and whatnot. AND THEN MY STUPID COMPUTER TOWER DECIDED TO BE ALL "Yeah, you guys don't need the internet anymore. I'm not working with that fucker anymore. Say BUH-BYE! **disconnects from internet**" ON US AND THUS MADE US HAVE TO SWITCH OVER TO USING MY BIG SIS'S OLD COMPUTER TOWER THAT SHE'D NAMED "Izzy" AFTER THE GENIUS-SLASH-COMPUTER WHIZ KID OF THE FIRST SEASON OF "Digimon" BECAUSE IT'S AN "Insignia" COMPUTER TOWER OR WHATEVER!!! AARGH!! **wants to rip hair out** I didn't have ANYTHING of mine from the old comp tower for, like... three weeks! THAT INCLUDES MY iTunes MUSIC!! **DX** I hate technology sometimes. But I digress. Let's get AWAY from my problems and back to the story, shall we? Good.  
Reno: So what took ya so long to update this, yo?  
Kit: **head/DESK!** Ugh! I KNEW someone was gonn ask me that! Unfortunately for you, Reno, I really don't feel like elaborating on that. And you just signed yourself up to do the disclaimer! And no, you do NOT have any other choice! **smiles sweetly at the redhead**  
Reno: WH-WHAAAA!!!!???? **(O.O)** That is so not fair, yo!  
Kit: **death glare of ultimate DOOM!**  
Reno: **(O.O) gulps loudly** KitaraStrife doesn't hold any claim to the Final Fantasy franchise, its characters, or any of its merchandise. All she owns is a copy of "Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII," a copy of the "Final Fantasy X" walkthrough guidebook thing, and—though most apparently say it doesn't count—a copy of "Final Fantasy X-2" for the PS2. Any O.C.'s within this supposed-to-be one-shot are entirely owned by KitaraStrife or one of her friends (namely those of H e a r tless f a i r ytale). She does not own any songs used in this story either, the artists who sing them will be stated in the ending author's note. Also, please note that her father told her in an irrelevant-to-this-disclaimer-conversation that bars tend to close at around 2 or 3 in the morning, effectively explaining the somewhat random appearance of an N.P.C. (or Non-Player Character) from the "Final Fantasy VII" video game named Johnny. And finally, she has no pocket money to her name whatsoever, save for random change in the form of a few quarters, dimes, and multiple pennies. OH! And Canadian coins, but I highly doubt you'll be able to make her part with those, yo.  
Kit: **facepalms** Thank you, Reno. That was... ...I have no idea what to say that was. Just.... Go. **tosses him a bottle of something alcoholic and watches him walk out** Ugh! Note to self, do NOT write disclaimer when half asleep! Let's just get on with the show.

_**EDIT AROUND ONE MONTH AFTER ORIGINALLY TYPING THIS!!!:**__ Okay, soo... just look at my profile to explain why this chapter is so effing late in getting up. My explanation should be my 4th rant/me babbling like an idiot/randomly posted thought/etc. thing at the very bottom of my profile right above the list of all of my fanfics that I should probably update sometime. Get it? Got it? Good._

_"words"_ means Person talking on the other end of any phone of any sort; Flashback-like sequences; Recaps in later chapters.  
"words" means Regular talking  
_'words'_ means Thinking

* * *

_**RECAP:**__ "Sorry to do this to ya, boys, but ya need to reload 'em!" Grinning at the squawk of indignation from the red-haired and tattooed man, Kit led the group in piling inside before she helped their "bodyguards" get the amplifiers reloaded by telekinetically lifting the heavy pieces of equipment into the air and into the trunk._

_"I hate it when she does that, yo."_

_"You know you still like her, Reno," teashed the bald man with a small smirk towards his slightly shorter partner as the two climbed in back and shut the doors._

_"Hang on to those amplifiers, boys!" Kanako called back as she started the engine. "It's gonna be a bumpy ride! _YEEHAW!!_"_

_As the van pulled out into the eerily non-existent traffic, Reno could be heard screaming one thing as they sped towards the little warehouse Rufus Shinra allows them to use for their practices so long as two of his top Turks remain the band's bodyguards, that thing being _**"WHOOOOOAAAAA!!!!!!!!"**

**FEARTHESCENECHANGEFONTORZACKWILLSCREAM"ZACK ATTACK!!"ANDGLOMPYOU!!!!!!!!!**

By the time they had reached their 'music studio,' Reno thought he was about ready to die and Kit was straddling Hito's lap, kissing him to keep the drummer from slamming his feet through the floor of the van to stop Kana's crazy-a---ed driving.

"Well, we're here!" Kanako smiled as she turned off the engine, unbuckling and pulling the keys out of the ignition before hopping out of hte car. Tifa unbuckled herself, then reached back and tapped Kit on the shoulder to get her to stop playing soul-sucker with Hito.(1)

"Have fun, Reno?" teased Rude as he opened up the back of hte van and climbed out, turning with a smirk to his redheaded partner who was still clutching his makeshift seat atop one of the amplifiers. The redhead just shot him an annoyed glare before slowly, _slowly_, releasing his white-knuckled grip on the amp and climbing out of the van on shaky limbs.

"I really hate ya when ya drive like a maniac, yo," he grumbled, reaching inside and pulling out the very same amplifier that he had been sitting on and beginning to carry it inside the warehouse. Rude just shook his head at his partner and grabbed the other amplifier.

"Heehee, I love you, too, Reno!" giggled Kanako, skipping up to the door and holding it open for the two Turks after unlocking it.

Around twenty minutes later, the group had all of their equipment set up in the warehouse. Tifa leaned heavily against the last of the speakers she had carried in; she had forgotten how heavy those pieces of equipment were, not to mention how exhausting!

"So, Kit," the wine-eyed woman asked, addressing the elder of the other two girls, "What exactly is your plan??"

Kit smirked evilly, her eyes switching from her normal hazel to the mischievous purple once again. "Weeeeeell...."

* * *

1. If you don't get this, your brain just does NOT work properly in my book.

Kit: Okay, so... my boyfriend's best friend said that I couldn't get TWO chapters out before the end of THEIR junior year of high school—which is in exactly one week from May 27, 2009, which is today—so that's why this chapter seems so damn short. Don't like it, BLAME THE IDIOT WHO ACTUALLY CALLS HIMSELF "Kisama" FOR CHALLENGIN' ME, YO!!  
Reno: Will ya stop stealing my catch phrase, yo!! It's annoying!  
Kit: Like I've said somewhere before, Reno: It's only your catch phrase in the ENGLISH version of the FF7 series; your catch phrase in Japan is "zutto," yo. **(;P)**  
Reno: **grumbles**  
Kit: **rolls eyes** Whatever. Anyways... MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!! **evil glint in eyes** MY FIRST EVIL CLIFFHANGER OF THE STORY!! I know my boyfriend's gonna kill me, but I just HAD to do it! **XD** Sorry, Jei, but you can blame "Kisama" for causing me to make this chapter so d---n short! You'll get the rest in chapter 4! PLEASE READ AND REVIEW!!


	4. Warehouse, Part 2

**CHAPTER 4:**** Warehouse, Part 2**

_**SUMMARY:**__ As Christmas draws closer, Cloud Strife struggles with a very difficult and delicate decision, a decision that could change not only his life but the life of someone very close to him as well. With the help of loyal and supportive friends and allies, will Cloud make the correct choice? Read to find out. Rated for safety, implied sexual content (I can't write that sort of stuff worth C__RA__P, nor could I do so to save my life!) and for the mouths of Barret, Cid, Reno, and my O.C.'s __–__ Kitara Miyuki Yuri Strife and Akihito Reynolds (rarely Akihito) __–__ and __H e a r tless f a i r ytale__'s O.C. __–__ Kanako Alana Alethea Superior Strife. (HOPE I SPELLED HER NAME RIGHT, __H e a r tless__!!) Main pairing is CloudxTifa with side-pairings of KitaraxAkihito, VincentxKanako (Yuffie didn't get the balls to tell Vinny she loves him yet, Jei, so put up with it! **;P**), CidxShera (they'll be at a party in one of these chapters), TsengxElena (will also be at a party in one of these chapters), ZackxAerith (they're gonna show up from the Lifestream at some point)._

**Thanks to anyone and anyone else for alerting this story! You kick ass!!**

**Thanks to anyone for reviewing the last chapter!!**

Kit: OH MY GAWD! I am _soooo_ sorry for taking forever with this chapter!! I had actually finished the thing on the comp and was gonna get it out into the world a few days after chapter 3, BUT THEN "Izzy" CRASHED!! **(T.T)** I guess I just lost my nerve to rewrite the chapter, but then my boyfriend gave me the printouts of chappies 1 through 3 I'd given him so I could get back to writing this! **huge grin** Anyways, even though we now have a new computer, I'm still figuring out the damn thing! **(DX)** So, instead of writing this chapter on the comp like the first three this time, I'm writing it how I do with all the other fics I write: on paper first.  
Tifa: Are you going to keep talking, or are you going to get onto the chapter?  
Kit: If you don't mind doing the disclaimer for me. **sweatdrop**  
Tifa: **sighs** I guess. **turns to everyone reading** KitaraStrife only owns the plotline of this sotry, copy rights to the word "Nibelheimian" though the she really doesn't care if anyone else uses it anyway, and the characters Kitara Miyuki Yuri Strife and Akihito Reynolds; the character named Kanako Alana Alethea Superior Strife belongs to H e a r tless f a i r ytale. The band name of "Blood Skulls" is copy right KitaraStrife and was influenced by nothing but her imagination. _Final Fantasy_, its characters, and anything associated with it—sans fanfictions written by fans—are property of Square Enix. Any songs used within this story belong to their respective artists and recording companies; KitaraStrife is _**NOT**_ making any profit off of this story. **looks to Kit** Is that good enough for you?  
Kit: **shrugs** Yeah, that'll do. Thanks, Tifa! **turns back to readers** Well, I think I've procrastinated long enough! ON WITH THE SHOW!!

_"words"_ means Person talking on the other end of any phone of any sort; Flashback-like sequences; Recaps in later chapters  
"words" means Regular talking  
_'words'_ means Thinking

* * *

_**RECAP:**__ Around twenty minutes later, the group had all of their equipment set up in the warehouse. Tifa leaned heavily agains the last of the speakers she had carried in; she had forgotten how heavy those pieces of equipment were, not to mention how exhausting!_

_"So, Kit," the wine-eyed woman asked, addressing the elder of the other two girls, "What exactly is your plan??"_

_Kit smirked evilly, her eyes switching from her normal hazel to the mischievous purple once again. "Weeeeeell...."_

**FEARTHESCENECHANGEFONTORZACKWILLSCREAM"ZACK ATTACK!!"ANDGLOMPYOU!!!!!!!!!**

" 'Weeeeeell' what, Kit?" Tifa asked, not wanting to wait for the girl to explain any longer.

"I actually was planning on us performing Sado Kuroija's 'Into the Night' while you and Reno did an interpretive dance to it?" she replied with a nervous tone, ending her statement as a question as she rubbed the back of her head. Staring around at everyone else in the room, Kitara waited for one of the outraged responses she knew were coming.

Reno's was first.

The Turk's expostulation was a quick and vehement "HELL no, yo!" which successfully caused everyone but Rude to cover their ears.

"Owwie! Reno, stop hurting our ears!" whined Kanako.

"Yeah, and besides, if you're afraid that Cloud's gonna hurt ya for doin' this, Reno, I _promise_ he won't," assured Kit.

"Nuh-uh! No way! Nothin' doin'!" The turk was absolutely certain that her plan would fall through, but her firm asseverations that her nii-san would not attack him had the redheaded Turk acquiescing to the plan.

"Yay!" cried Kanako as she glomped the lanky man.

"OOF! Let me guess: she knew, too?" he asked, looking down at the lead singer-slash-guitarist.

"Yep!" replied the two Strife girls in unison.

Groaning as Kanako let go of him, Reno said, "I hate your telepathy powers."

"Aw, don't hate us or our powers!" play whined Kanako.

"Yeah. Blame Hojo and Shinra Incorporated for Mako and bitch-alien Jenova cells," finished Kit with an eerily calm grin.

Scurrying behind Akihito, Reno gave Kit the perfect look at her boyfriend.

Tilting her head, Kit asked, "What's wrong with you, Hito-kun?"

"What's wrong? What's _wrong_?!" Akihito growled. "I'll tell you what's wrong! You _lied_ to me! You told me that only _Tifa_ would be dancing tonight!"

"Ohhh! Thaaaat! Yeah... I didn't _lie_! And I did _not_ say that Tifa was the _**only**_ one that was gonna dance tonight!" replied an indignant back-up singer-slash-bassist. "I said she _would_ be dancing," she added, sticking out her tongue.

"I hate her future-seeing power," Reno whispered to his bald partner.

"There is no way I am going to go along with this!"

"Yes you will."

"No, I won't!"

Kit death glared her boyfriend and began arguing with him about her plan.

After arguing vehemently against Kit's idea for another ten minutes, Akihito finally capitulated with a final statement of, "I'll only keep quiet about it as long as _he_ does _not_ dance anywhere near or in front of me!" with a simmering jerk of his head in Reno's direction; Kit squealed, smiled, and glomped her drummer boyfriend happily in thanks a split-second later.

Someone clearing their throat snapped Kit's attention away from her boyfriend. Looking behind her, her eyes met the accusing wine of Tifa's.

"And you were going to actually _ask_ me if I would do this _when_?"

"Umm... right now?Eh-heh..." Kit let go of her boyfriend to rub the back of her head again. "So... will you please do this with us, Tifa?"

"Well, of course," replied the woman with a smile. "I just wanted you to ask first."

With a shout of joy from both guitarists, The Blood Skulls, two Turks, and one bartendress began rehearsing for later that night.

* * *

Kit: Well, I have no chapter notes this time and can only say that I did _not_ mean for the number scheme thing there at the end. Also, sorry for the long wait on these two chapters everyone. I had last chapter finished about 3 months before this one, just had computer troubles this year, so that's why it took me forever to upload 'em.  
Reno: Can I run for cover now?  
Kit: Yeah, sure, whatever. **waves head in a "I don't care" gesture**  
Reno: READ AND REVIEW, YO! **runs for shelter from Cloud**  
Kit: Wow... now I really owe him a lot of cookies for doing that without asking. Well, see ya next chapter!


	5. Let the Festivities BEGIN!

**CHAPTER 5:**** Let the Festivities BEGIN!**

_**SUMMARY:**__ As Christmas draws closer, Cloud Strife struggles with a very difficult and delicate decision, a decision that could change not only his life but the life of someone very close to him as well. With the help of loyal and supportive friends and allies, will Cloud make the correct choice? Read to find out. Rated for safety, implied sexual content (I can't write that sort of stuff worth C__RA__P, nor could I do so to save my life!) and for the mouths of Barret, Cid, Reno, and my O.C.'s __–__ Kitara Miyuki Yuri Strife and Akihito Reynolds (rarely Akihito) __–__ and __H e a r tless f a i r ytale__'s O.C. __–__ Kanako Alana Alethea Superior Strife. (HOPE I SPELLED HER NAME RIGHT, __H e a r tless__!!) Main pairing is CloudxTifa with side-pairings of KitaraxAkihito, VincentxKanako (Yuffie didn't get the balls to tell Vinny she loves him yet, Jei, so put up with it! ;P), CidxShera (they'll be at a party in one of these chapters), TsengxElena (will also be at a party in one of these chapters), ZackxAerith (they're gonna show up from the Lifestream at some point)._

**Thanks to ****PeAceLovEr 12** **for alerting this story! You kick ass!!**

**Thanks to anyone for reviewing the last chapter!!**

Kit: Okay, soo... I don't feel like dragging out my beginning author's notes lately, so I'mma just have Yuffie do the d—n disclaimer. YUFFIE!!  
Yuffie: **drops down from the ceiling** Right here! **stupid goofy smile** KitaraStrife does not own the Final Fantasy franchise nor anything connected to it—sans fanfictions. She only owns the plotline of this story, copy rights to the word "Nibelheimian" though the she really doesn't care if anyone else uses it anyway, and the characters Kitara Miyuki Yuri Strife and Akihito Reynolds; the character named Kanako Alana Alethea Superior Strife belongs to H e a r tless f a i r ytale. The band name of "Blood Skulls" is copy right KitaraStrife and was influenced by nothing but her imagination. Any songs used within this story belong to their respective artists and recording companies; KitaraStrife is _**NOT**_ making any profit off of this story. And my smile is NOT stupid OR goofy!!  
Kit: **totally ignoring Yuffie's last statement** Well, there ya go, people. OH! And I'm adding in a pairing because I can not believe I forgot to add it in!!!: Reeve TuestixShalua Rui. Yeah, I know that most people believe that Shalua's suspended animation-pod thingy was lost to the pits of Midgar after the whole fighting in the second half of "Dirge of Cerberus" due to the Secret Ending, but I say that they somehow retrieved it and got her better. Don't like it, BITE ME! **;P** Anyways, ON WITH THE SHOW!!!

_"words"_ means Person talking on the other end of any phone of any sort; Flashback-like sequences; Recaps in later chapters  
"words" means Regular talking  
_'words'_ means Thinking

* * *

_**RECAP:**__ "And you were going to actually ask me if I would do this __when__?"_

_"Umm... right now?Eh-heh..." Kit let go of her boyfriend to rub the back of her head again. "So... will you please do this with us, Tifa?"_

_"Well, of course," replied the woman with a smile. "I just wanted you to ask first."_

_With a shout of joy from both guitarists, The Blood Skulls, two Turks, and one bartendress began rehearsing for later that night._

********

FEAR THE SCENE CHANGE FONT OR ZACK WILL SCREAM _ZACK ATTACK!!_ AND GLOMP YOU!!!!!!!!!

Later that night, after rehearsing the set list for the party as well as the dance for their cover of Sado Kuroija's "Into the Night," The Blood Skulls and their bodyguards and Tifa all packed the equipment back up and headed back to the Seventh Heaven bar to set everything up for that night.

"Well, that's everything," huffed Kanako as she set down her guitar in its stand.

Stretching, Kit replied, "Yyyep. AH! So... wanna go get ready before everyone starts showing up?"

"Uh-huh." Kanako looked directly at Reno.

Seeing her staring at him, the redheaded Turk uttered a confused, "What? Why are you staring at me, yo?"

"Because _you_ need to get a good costume for the dance. Now come on!" Kanako stated, grabbing Reno's arm and hauling him up the stairs to where she kept all her costumes.(1)

"What are you talking about?! I don't need a costume, yo!! Kana!!" Reno tried to struggle out of her grip, but the black base-haired girl just gripped tighter, digging her nails into his arm and causing him to wince and cease struggling and just follow her upstairs.

"Hnhnhn! Poor Flames," giggled Kit, following them upstairs, Akihito behind her.

"I'll change later, you guys," Tifa called after them, seeing Kit wave a hand in acknowledgement while Akihito nodded his head before the two were out of sight. Sighing, Tifa walked over to the bar and cleaned up whatever needed to be cleaned up before all their friends and guests arrived.

****

FEAR THE SCENE CHANGE FONT OR ZACK WILL SCREAM _ZACK ATTACK!!_ AND GLOMP YOU!!!!!!!!!

Around one hour later, everyone was in the bar mingling with each other and or talking to other guests, catching up on what had been going on in everyone's lives, or just hanging around the bar and having a contest to see who could drink the most before even becoming _slightly_ shit-faced like Barret and Rufus were doing under the watchful eye of Tifa, Tseng and Elena. Vincent was hiding out in a dark corner talking to Shelke and Red XIII; Yuffie was helping Tifa out behind the bar along with Denzel and Marlene; Cid and Shera were talking with some W.R.O. members that were in the air force division; Cait Sith was standing next to Reeve and Shalua as they were explaining a new device for Barret's gunarm to him and Rufus, both holding their liquor down.

Upstairs, Reno absolutely _refused_ to exit the impromtu changing room for anything other than the use of the bathroom or whenever they needed him to do the dance. After strenuous arguing, the girls decided to leave him and go downstairs to start their show, Akihito having already gone down to talk to Cloud after promising for the millionth time to _not_ spill their surprise to the blond. All the girls and Akihito had down to get ready was put on some make-up that made it look like their faces were actually bleeding when they were not and redo their hair a bit, whereas with Reno they had forced him into an outfit of Kanako's choice that they told him he could change out of after he had danced.(2)

Going downstairs, Kit sent Hito a telepathic message to get to the stage Tifa had set up as she and Kanako said their hellos to their friends and extended family members. Stepping up on the stage and taking their places as they grabbed their instruments, the girls and Hito looked out at the crowd, seeing no one paying attention except those they had said hi to. Nodding her head, Kanako gave Kit a silent signal before both of them strummed a loud note on their respective instruments, effectively getting everyone to look at the stage.

"Thank you all for coming and welcome to the Seventh Heaven Holiday Bash!" Kanako greeted with a smile as she looked out over the small sea of people, said smile widening slightly when she saw Vincent looking at her with a specific look in his beautiful crimson eyes.(3) "If you don't know who we are—"

"—You've either led a very sheltered life up until now or have been living under a rock," finished Kitara.

"Now then, we're gonna open up with one of our favorite songs, even if it's NOT a holiday song," Kanako informed everyone. "It's called 'See Who I Am' by Amidst the Tempress. Hope you all enjoy," she finished. Immediately afterwards, Akihito began the song, the girls quickly following up with their guitars.

_Is it true what they say,  
__Are we too blind to find a way?  
__Fear of the unknown cloud our hearts today.  
__Come into my world,  
__See through my eyes.  
__Try to understand,  
__Don't want to lose what we have_

_We've been dreaming  
__But who can deny,  
__It's the best way of living  
__Between the truth and the lies_

_See who I am,  
__Break through the surface.  
__Reach for my hand,  
__Let's show them that we can  
__Free our minds and find a way.  
__The world is in our hands,  
__This is not the end_

_Fear is withering the soul  
__At the point of no return.  
__We must be the change  
__We wish to see.  
__I'll come into your world,  
__See through your eyes.  
__I'll try to understand,  
__Before we lose what we have._

_We just can't stop believing  
__'cause we have to try.  
__We can rise above  
__Their truth and their lies._

_See who I am,  
__Break through the surface.  
__Reach for my hand,  
__Let's show them that we can  
__Free our minds and find a way.  
__The world is in our hands,_

_See who I am,  
__Break through the surface.  
__Reach for my hand,  
__Let's show them that we can  
__Free our minds and find a way.  
__The world is in our hands,  
__This is not the end_

_I hear the silence  
__Preaching my blame.  
__Will our strength remain  
__If their power reigns?_

_See who I am,  
__Break through the surface.  
__Reach for my hand,  
__Let's show them that we can  
__Free our minds and find a way.  
__The world is in our hands,_

_See who I am,  
__Break through the surface.  
__Reach for my hand,  
__Let's show them that we can  
__Free our minds and find a way.  
__The world is in our hands,  
__This is not the end_

After the song ended, everyone clapped and whooped their appreciation.

"Thank you. This next song will be an actual holiday song." With that, the band started playing a rendition of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen."

* * *

1. Yes, Kanako makes the costumes for the band. This is based off of H e a r tless f a i r ytale's idea of Kanako, where she is actually a clothing designer of sorts or something.

2. What? Their band name is The Blood Skulls, why not have it look like their faces are bleeding? **shrugs**

3. What? Just because H e a r tless claimed him, that means I can't at least crush on him? I DON'T THINK SO!!! I will on crush on whoever I want, thank you!

Kit: Well, there you have it everyone! Chapter 5. "Amidst the Tempress" is my name for "Within Temptation" in this fic. The song I had Kanako sing--yes, that was KANAKO--is their song and belongs to them like it says in the disclaimer. Hope you enjoyed it and happy belated Thanksgiving to all living in the United States of America!! No long ending author's note this time around either. Just READ AND REVIEW, PLEASE! THANK YOU!!


	6. The Dance

**CHAPTER 6:**** The Dance**

_**SUMMARY:**__ As Christmas draws closer, Cloud Strife struggles with a very difficult and delicate decision, a decision that could change not only his life but the life of someone very close to him as well. With the help of loyal and supportive friends and allies, will Cloud make the correct choice? Read to find out. Rated for safety, implied sexual content (I can't write that sort of stuff worth C__RA__P, nor could I do so to save my life!) and for the mouths of Barret, Cid, Reno, and my O.C.'s __–__ Kitara Miyuki Yuri Strife and Akihito Reynolds (rarely Akihito) __–__ and __H e a r tless f a i r ytale__'s O.C. __–__ Kanako Alana Alethea Superior Strife. (HOPE I SPELLED HER NAME RIGHT, __H e a r tless__!!) Main pairing is CloudxTifa with side-pairings of KitaraxAkihito, VincentxKanako (Yuffie didn't get the balls to tell Vinny she loves him yet, Jei, so put up with it! ;P), CidxShera (they'll be at a party in one of these chapters), TsengxElena (will also be at a party in one of these chapters), Reeve TuestixShalua Rui, ZackxAerith (they're gonna show up from the Lifestream at some point)._

**Thanks to **LadyTeefStrife **for alerting this story! You kick ass!! If you want to kiss up to me, all you gotta do is bake me some cookies (preferably chocolate chip, but sugar and peanut butter are fine, too **XD**) and I will be satisfied. And I KNOW!! The Clerith pairing is totally stupid! I mean, I can understand how people would think that's what the pairing is supposed to be, BUT IT'S NOT!! **DDDX** There are precise hints in FF7 and the movie that flat out TELL YOU that the pairing is supposed to be CloudxTifa!! **DX** Why don't people pick up on them? Why?! **T_T** And you definitely paid more attention to those weirdo little descriptions than me! **O.o** I don't remember anything about "a call to Vincent Valentine" in DoC, and I'm definitely not sure of what "novel" you're speaking of, unless it's that "Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children -- The Novel" that came with the special edition of the movie. **^^'** And you're right, you DON'T send 89 letters to someone you don't love! ANOTHER HINT, CLERITH FANS!! AERITH SENT ZACK THAT MANY LETTERS, EVEN THOUGH HE WASN'T REPLYING TO MOST OF THEM!! **spazzing out angrily, waving arms around** ...Sorry... OH! And have you seen "Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete" yet?! If not, GET A BLU-RAY PLAYER AND RENT IT!! **DX** IT IS AWESOME! I absolutely LOVE IT! They added in some scenes and totally deleted others (like Reno climbing up that clothed building like a spider to get up to Rufus and stepping on Rude's head, successfully making him fall down. **giggles** I loved that part in the regular version, BUT THEY TOOK IT OUT IN ACC!! **DX**) and even gave some characters--like Elena, even though I'd rather they had done this with TSENG and or Red XIII/Nanaki, but the latter there is understandable when you know about his Japanese voice actor--more lines, or they just totally changed some lines and made me a sad kitty. **pouts** Oh well, can't change it when you're not part of the production team or whatever. And I'm done now. Enjoy the chapter! **^^' **Also, thank you **vIoLeT bUtTeRfLy 90** for alerting this story. **^-^** Sorry I don't have a majorly long rant for you, but, meh. **XD** You know you are loved anyway!**

**Thanks to PeAceLovEr 12 and ****vIoLeT bUtTeRfLy 90**** for reviewing the last chapter!!**

**Thanks to ****PeAceLovEr 12 and vIoLeT bUtTeRfLy 90 for adding me to their favorites!!**

Kit: Well, here's chapter 6! I'm too lazy to write the disclaimer, so just refer to past chapters cause everything from them applies here, same for the song "Into the Night" by Chad Kroeger ft. Santana since it doesn't belong to me at all. I really only the name change I did to Chad Kroeger's name in this and previous chapters. ^^' ENJOY EVERYONE!!

_"words"_ means Person talking on the other end of any phone of any sort; Flashback-like sequences; Recaps in later chapters  
_**"words"**_ means Kit or Kanako starting a telepathic communication with one or more people. **XD** And then that person or people responding, obviously. **(^^')**  
"words" means Regular talking  
_'words'_ means Thinking

* * *

_**RECAP:** __After the song ended, everyone clapped and whooped their appreciation._

_"Thank you. This next song will be an actual holiday song." With that, the band started playing a rendition of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen."_

**FEAR THE SCENE CHANGE FONT OR ZACK WILL SCREAM **_**ZACK ATTACK!!**_** AND GLOMP YOU!!!!!!!!!**

After playing holiday songs for two hours and the girls switching back and forth between who was lead singer for some of the songs, Kit and Kanako sent a look toward Tifa; she nodded and turned to Marlene, Denzel and Yuffie.

"Think you three can handle the bar for a bit?" she asks them as she washes her hands real quick.

"Sure, Tifa!" responded Marlene and Denzel with a smile.

"You can count on us. Especially me, the champion of the earth and the sky, the conqueror of evil, the single white rose of Wutai and Super Ninja, Yuffie Kisaragi!!" exclaimed Yuffie, jumping up on the bar counter and striking a heroic pose; unfortunately for her, the only people listening were a bunch of snot-nosed teenaged boys who were staring at her with drool hanging out of their mouths as Marlene and Denzel had stopped listening before she even uttered the word "especially" and Tifa had disappeared up the stairs at that exact same moment.

Upstairs, Tifa walked into the room where Kanako kept all her costumes, seeing Reno strangely lounging on the bed with the covers hiding his lower half. Quirking an eyebrow, Tifa just stared at him before shaking her head and walking over to the closet where, hanging upon the door, was a sparkling midnight blue flamenco dress with a note from Kanako taped to the hanger:(1)

_Wear this one for the dance._

_The heels are on the floor inside the closet instead of on the rack with the others._

"You want me to leave so you can change into that, yo?" Reno asked from the bed. Tifa looked at him before shaking her head as she grabbed the dress.

"No. I can just use the bathroom, Reno," she replied, heading for said room and locking the door behind her once inside. After stripping out of her usual attire and into the dress, Tifa realized that Kanako, being Kanako, had altered the dress a bit. It had a slightly lower neckline than traditional flamenco dresses but was still tasteful, the torso had "holes" in the sides so the skin on either side of her abdomen was showing but her stomach and back were still covered, and the skirt was slanted toward her left leg. Looking herself over in the full-length mirror, Tifa had to admit that she looked amazing in the dress and after pulling out the make-up kit that Kanako always had in the bathroom and applying some sparkling eyeshadow and blush and raspberry ice lipstick, she stepped out of the bathroom with her other clothes and set them neatly on a chair near the closet.

Hearing a wolf whistle from the bed, she looked up with a what she wanted to be a glare but was a slightly embarrassed blush mixed with a weird look that was far from a glare.

"If I didn't know you were already taken by Strife I would hit on you right now, Tifa," Reno admitted, looking her up and down, the bedsheets still covering his lower half and making Tifa wonder what exactly Kanako and Kit made him put on.

"Thank you, Reno," she replied, going over to a drawer and removing a pair of sheer pantyhose, pulling them on quickly and with expertise before walking over to the closet and opening it to find the pair of heels Kanako had mentioned in the note. What she saw made her think about finding a different pair of shoes, but she thought better of it and picked up the strappy black stiletto heels that Kanako had picked out; knowing that girl, she had probably looked at all the other shoes Tifa's size and realized that only that pair would go with the dress.

Turning around after putting the shoes on, Tifa just stared at Reno. "Well, are you going to show me what Kanako and Kit made you put on or are you going to chicken out after all?"

"Yeah, I'll show ya," Reno sighed, knowing he had to eventually anyway. "Just promise not to laugh, will ya?" he added, removing the sheet and sliding off the bed to stand on his feet at the same time. Staring at him, Tifa had to admit that Kanako and Kit knew how to dress the Turk well.

"Umm... they didn't give you a shirt?" she inquired.

"No. They said it would ruin the affect," he replied with a roll of his eyes, pulling on the pair of dancing shoes Kanako had told him to wear if he wanted to have kids some day.(2) Standing up, he looked at Tifa again. "Well, let's get this over with so Cloud can kill me."

"Cloud is not going to kill you just because you dance with me, Reno," objected Tifa with a small, friendly smile as the two of them exited the room and headed for the stairs.

"Yeah, I know. But it's hard not to think that, ya know?" the shirtless redhead replied sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.

_**"Are you two ready yet?!"**_ suddenly echoed in both of their heads; Kit was getting impatient again.

_**"Yeah, we're ready, Kit-Kat,"**_ Reno replied. _**"And did ya have to shout?"**_

_**"Well, yeah. Sorry, Tifa, but it was mainly to get through his thick skull."**_

_**"I do not have a thick**__**—!!"**_

_**"We're coming down the stairs right now, Kit,"**_ Tifa said, cutting Reno off and descending the stairs.

_**"Okay, good!"**_ Kit replied, cutting off the telepathic connection and giving Kanako the signal to introduce the next song.

"Okay, everyone, this next song is definitely _not_ a holiday song, but we actually planned something out for this, so we hope you all enjoy!" Kanako nearly had to scream into the microphone to be heard, there was so much cheering after their last song. Kit nodded to Rude and the bald Turk turned off the lights and switched on the spotlights, aiming them towards the staircase as Kanako began playing the song; Kit began singing and playing bass soon after seeing as her voice was lower in pitch compared to Kanako's.

_Like a gift from the heavens  
__It was easy to tell  
__It was love from above  
__that could save me from hell  
__She had fire in her soul  
__it was easy to see  
__How the devil himself  
__could be pulled out of me_

Tifa and Reno danced from the stairwell over and up onto the stage, the spotlights following them all the way; Tifa's dress flowed smoothly along with her and nobody in the room could deny how amazingly she and Reno looked together while dancing. Hell, nobody could deny that all of the decorations were banal compared to how Reno looked in spandex. When Kit sang the line "She had fire in her soul it was easy to see How the devil himself could be pulled out of me," Tifa and Reno acted like she was pulling something out of him and throwing it away.

_There were drums in the air_  
_as she started to dance_  
_Every soul in the room_  
_keeping time with their hands_

It was here that Akihito finally started playing the drums as Tifa and Reno continued to dance. Kit invited everyone to start clapping along to the beat here as well.

_And we sang Ayo Ayo Ayo Ey_  
_And our voices rang like the angels sing_  
_And singing Ayo Ayo Ayo Ey_  
_And we danced on into the night_  
_Ayo Ayo, Ayo Ayo_  
_And we danced on into the night_

_Like a piece to the puzzle _  
_that falls into place_  
_You could tell how we felt_  
_from the look on our faces_  
_We were spinning in circles_  
_with the moon in our eyes_  
_No room left to move_  
_in between you and I_  
_We forgot where we were_  
_and we lost track of time_  
_And we sang to the wind_  
_as we danced through the night_

_And we sang Ayo Ayo Ayo Ey_  
_And our voices rang like the angels sing_  
_And singing Ayo Ayo Ayo Ey_  
_And we danced on into the night_  
_Ayo Ayo, Ayo Ayo_  
_And we danced on into the night _  
_Ayo Ayo, Ayo Ayo_  
_And we danced on into the night_

Tifa and Reno continued to dance together in a sexy dance as Kanako played through the guitar solo, adding her own style to it while still managing to keep it Costa del Solian-sounding. While her sister did that, Kit looked out through the audience to find their brother; the blond was seated at a booth in the back in a somewhat dark corner of the bar, clutching a bottle of bourbon whiskey and staring at the the show going on before his eyes. This made her worry that she might have inadvertantly falsely promised Reno that her brother would not kill him.

_Like a gift from the heavens_  
_It was easy to tell_  
_It was love from above_  
_that could save me from hell_  
_She had fire in her soul_  
_it was easy to see_  
_How the devil himself_  
_could be pulled out of me_  
_There were drums in the air_  
_as she started to dance_  
_Every soul in the room_  
_keeping time with their hands_

_And we sang Ayo Ayo Ayo Ey_  
_And our voices rang like the angels sing_  
_And singing Ayo Ayo Ayo Ey_  
_And we danced on into the night_  
_(Ayo Ey) _  
_Ayo Ayo Ayo Ey_  
_And we danced on into the night_  
_ (And our voices rang like the angels sing)_  
_And singing_  
_Ayo Ayo Ayo Ey_  
_And we danced on into the night_  
_Ayo Ayo Ayo Ey_  
_(Ayo Ayo)_  
_Ayo Ayo Ayo Ey_  
_(Ayo Ayo)_  
_Singing Ayo Ayo Ayo Ey_  
_(Ayo Ayo)_  
_And we danced on into the night_

As the song ended, everyone clapped happily. Kit was only slightly relieved to see that Cloud was clapping, even if it was not as happily as everyone else. Hell, there were a lot of drunk men in the bar hooting and hollering at Tifa because of her outfit.

Now all they needed to do was pray that Cloud got the d--n message and did not kill Reno.

* * *

1. I didn't know what the hell to make the dress look like, so I asked Cooley Fair for help and together we came up with flamenco dress and I looked on up on the net. Here's the url for the dress I finally decided to base Tifa's off of, only with spaces that need to be taken out to actually go and see it: http:// flamencodress . net / images / flamenco / flamenco _ 250x251 . jpg I obviously did NOT like those heels, soo... yeah. XD  
2. Yeah, Kanako can get downright MEAN when she threatens someone if she wants to. ^^'

Kit: BLARG! **XP** I pictured that dance so much better than I wrote it! **DX** I'm not too good at describing dancing so sorry about that everyone!! But at least I'm finally getting my ass around to updating this quicker than before! **XD** Maybe I'll actually finish it by Christmas this time!! **XDD**  
Reno: **throws the spandex off to reveal heart-print boxers underneath** NEVER again will you make me wear those d--n things!!  
Kit: Reno?  
Reno: What?!  
Kit: You have to put them back on next chapter. **XD**  
Reno: **pails** Oh, F--K NO!!  
Kit: I could totally drag out next chapter and make you have to wear them for TWO more chapters instead, ya know.  
Reno: .... I'll put 'em back one for next chapter.  
Kit: Good. **smiles happily** Well, that's it for chapter 6 everybody! Hope you enjoyed it! READ AND REVIEW PLEASE! LATERS!


	7. The Question

**CHAPTER 7:**** The Question**

_**SUMMARY:**__ As Christmas draws closer, Cloud Strife struggles with a very difficult and delicate decision, a decision that could change not only his life but the life of someone very close to him as well. With the help of loyal and supportive friends and allies, will Cloud make the correct choice? Read to find out. Rated for safety, implied sexual content (I can't write that sort of stuff worth C__RA__P, nor could I do so to save my life!) and for the mouths of Barret, Cid, Reno, and my O.C.'s __–__ Kitara Miyuki Yuri Strife and Akihito Reynolds (rarely Akihito) __–__ and __H e a r tless f a i r ytale__'s O.C. __–__ Kanako Alana Alethea Superior Strife. (HOPE I SPELLED HER NAME RIGHT, __H e a r tless__!!) Main pairing is CloudxTifa with side-pairings of KitaraxAkihito, VincentxKanako (Yuffie didn't get the balls to tell Vinny she loves him yet, Jei, so put up with it! ;P), CidxShera (they'll be at a party in one of these chapters), TsengxElena (will also be at a party in one of these chapters), Reeve TuestixShalua Rui, ZackxAerith (they're gonna show up from the Lifestream at some point)._

**Thanks to ****HeloEyes** **for alerting this story! You kick ass!!**

**Thanks to Musicalyak for adding me to their favorite authors list!!**

**Thanks to ****PeAceLovEr 12**** for reviewing the last chapter!!**

Kit: Okay, so I DIDN'T get this chapter out by Christmas this time. THE FUCKING THING DIDN'T WANT TO BE WRITTEN!!! **DDX** Though, getting a Wii and Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess for it didn't help either. **major sweatdrop** I can't help it if the graphics are amazing and Link just looks even hotter than ever!! Though, he COULD stand to grab onto the edge of a cliff that's NOT in a dungeon when about to walk off of it once in a while. **pouts and grumbles** Oh well. Can't change that, so I'll just change my stories instead! **XD** Not that I'm really changing anything in this one; talking about other stories I'm still writing. **sweatdrop** Okay, enough stalling. ON WITH THE DISCLAIMER!!!  
Marlene: Is it my turn, Kit?  
Kit: Yes it is, Marlene. Go ahead. **(^-^)**  
Marlene: The only things that KitaraStrife owns in this fanfic are the characters of Kitara Miyuki Yuri Strife and Akihito Reynolds along with the band name "Blood Skulls"; Kanako Alana Alethea Superior Strife belongs to H e a r tless f a i r ytale and everything else belongs to either Square Enix or the respective singers and their record companies.  
Kit: Thank you, Marlene. **hands her a cookie** Well, then happy belated Christmas and New Year's everybody. ON WITH THE SHOW!!!

_"words"_ means Person talking on the other end of any phone of any sort; Flashback-like sequences; Recaps in later chapters  
"words" means Regular talking  
_'words'_ means Thinking

* * *

_**RECAP:**__ As the song ended, everyone clapped happily. Kit was only slightly relieved to see that Cloud was clapping, even if it was not as happily as everyone else. Hell, there were a lot of drunk men in the bar hooting and hollering at Tifa because of her outfit._

_Now all they needed to do was pray that Cloud got the damn message and did not kill Reno._

**FEAR THE SCENE CHANGE FONT OR ZACK WILL SCREAM **_**ZACK ATTACK!!**_** AND GLOMP YOU!!!!!!!!!**

After the crowd's cheering died down, Reno quickly excused himself to change back into his more comfortable attire while Tifa went back behind the bar, not wanting to bother with changing out of the dress. This left the girls and Akihito on the stage to play some more songs, eventually taking requests when they announced they were tired of playing all the joyful holiday songs. Someone requested "Ready to Fly" while another requested "The Ghost Woman and the Hunter" by Spiraling Laguna while still others requested more holiday-appropriate songs.

Meanwhile, Cloud was still in his booth in the corner, his bottle of bourbon whiskey sitting and looking all but forgotten on the table as the blond warrior looked at a little black box he was turning over and over in his hands. He was mulling over something, yet giving off the vibe of someone who absolutely did not want to be disturbed unless for a very good reason.

Reno came back down in his normal attire–the Turk uniform–only instead of the usual white button-up shirt, he wore a red one that nearly matched his hair color. He scanned the crowd, taking note of his colleagues and boss talking and have a good time with all those around; hell, even Rude was getting into the spirit and chatting it up with a fellow ShinRa employee who worked in the offices, was _not_ a Turk, and was of the opposite sex.(1) If Reno did not know better, he would have said that his partner was flirting with the woman, who, by the way, seemed to be flirting right back. Did the redhead go over and try to play wingman? No, he kept scanning the room and saw the famous chocobo-headed hero sitting by himself and giving off a vibe that he could pick up all the way from the opposite side of the room. Unfortunately, to Reno the vibe said "I'm going to kill or at least maim Reno for dancing with Tifa" and caused his face to pale a bit.

From her position on the stage, Kit managed to pick up on the slight color drain from the Turk's face and it made her worries about inadvertantly falsely promising Reno that her brother would not kill him grow.

_'I can't help but think that I just __**might**__ have besmirched whatever relationship exists between Cloud and Reno with this idea of mine,'_ she thought as she glanced nervously between her brother and the redheaded Turk.

An hour later, The Blood Skulls announced they were ending and that a DJ–Rude–would be playing the rest of the requests for the night so that they could mingle and chat with their friends; Kanako threatened to dismantle anyone who touched their instruments and equipment while still in good mentality to know not to before smiling and saying a cheerful "Happy Holidays!" and hopping off the stage and making a beeline for Vincent. Kit headed straight for Reno to make sure he was okay, Akihito following right behind her.

Finding the redhead sitting in a stool at the bar, Kit took a seat in the stool on Reno's left and looked at him while Akihito sat on her other side and ordered them a couple of waters and a sake for himself; Tifa just shook her head at his final order but got it anyway.

"So... what's wrong, Reno?" inquired Kitara after taking a quick sip of her water.

"The vibe your bro's giving off from all the way over there," he replied, taking another gulp of his beer. Kit quickly looked to where Cloud was sitting and saw him concentrating on a little black box and smirked before looking back at Reno, her worries from earlier disappearing.

"I already promised you that he wasn't gonna hurt ya in any way, didn't I?"

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean he ain't gonna try, yo."

"Reno, stop being such a baby and suck it up. You've lived through him pummeling ya nearly to death before," Kit said, reminding the redhead about the Sector 7 pillar bombing incident she had heard so much about. That memory only made Reno wince.

"Yeah, but that was just about a pillar. Think about what he'll do because of dancing with his woman, yo."

"UUUGH! You're absolutely hopeless!" groaned the girl. "If this is how you're gonna be for the rest of the night, then we'll just leave you to your worries and beer." With that, she stood up and walked off into the crowd in search of her favorite female Turk, Hikari Tano, with Akihito following after her.(2)

**FEAR THE SCENE CHANGE FONT OR ZACK WILL SCREAM **_**ZACK ATTACK!!**_** AND GLOMP YOU!!!!!!!!!**

It was not until another two hours later that Cloud finally got up from his booth and headed for the bar, one hand in his pocket. Reno saw this and quickly got up and left the bar in favor of going and hanging out with his bald partner. Cloud was five steps away from the bar before Kit noticed that he had moved from her position near the Seventh Heaven street entrance where she and Akihito were talking and laughing about Turk stuff with the brunette Turk, Hikari; she narrowed her eyes and waited for Hikari to stop talking before saying, "Hey, Kari? We'll talk to ya more later, kay? Gotta go do somethin' real quick," and hurriedly making her way through the crowd towards Rude to tell him to get the spotlight ready before rushing in the direction of the bar.

At the bar, Cloud was waiting for Tifa to get done serving other customers, his one hand still inside his pocket. Smiling and telling Johnny to have a happy holiday, Tifa turned to Cloud.(3)

"Need a refill, Cloud?" she asked, still smiling.

"Uh..." Cloud almost said that he did, but quickly smacked himself mentally. "No. I... I wanted to ask you something."

Schooling her features to looked curiously concerned instead of happy and excited, Tifa turned and asked Yuffie and the kids to watch the bar for a few minutes before walking back out from behind the bar counter and over toward the staircase with Cloud, resisting the urge to look behind her for Kit to give her a look of _Finally!_ as she did so.

"What—" she began, only to pause when the music abruptly stopped and a spotlight was shone upon them; Cloud looked like a deer caught in the headlights and like he wanted to bolt but he knew that he left now, he would never get the courage to ask Tifa again. Both of the two caught in the spotlight looked out at the crowd, shading their eyes from the brightness, only to see Kit smirking at Cloud as she stood next to Rude. Cloud made a mental note to get back at his oldest little sister later; first he had to ask Tifa before he lost his nerve. As the two turned back to each other, Tifa finished her question: "What is you want to ask me, Cloud?" The question was heard all throughout the bar, seeing as everyone had gone dead silent once the spotlight had been turned back on.

Taking a deep breath to calm is nerves and rapidly beating heart, Cloud sank down to one knee and pulled the little black box he had been playing with earlier out of his pocket, feeling like an eternity had passed by the time he finished the motions. Almost the entire bar took a collective, happy gasp; some stared at him like he was an idiot, others with jealousy, and still others who were too waisted to realize what the hell was going on as they stared blankly. Tifa was staring at Cloud with a look of wide-eyed surprise, not expecting him to ask her _that_ question! When Kit had told her a month ago that–after boredly perusing her older brother's thoughts–Cloud was planning on asking her something, she never thought of this.

"Tifa.... will you marry me?" Cloud asked, feeling like his throat was closing up immediately after he asked the question, even as he opened the box to reveal the ring inside.

Tifa gasped, putting her hands over her mouth as her eyes went even wider as she stared at the object in Cloud's hand. The gleaming adamantine ring lay on a substratum of the finest satin the bartendress had ever seen; she reasoned that all of it together must have cost Cloud a fortune not even Rufus Shinra was willing to pay! She continued to stare at the ring with its inset small diamonds and allover beauty for five minutes.

Despite what he thought he was showing outside, Cloud's anxiety was being revealed quite well on his face. To everyone's surprise, Cloud's face had somewhat taken on a sallow look as he awaited Tifa's answer.

Close by the spotlighted couple, Cid, Barret, Reeve, Denzel, Yuffie, and Marlene all quietly cleared their throats, resulting in enough noise to snap the wine-eyed brunette out of her little trance. Moving her eyes from the ring to hold the bright Mako-enhanced blue ones of Cloud, Tifa's eyes slowly filled with tears; this gave the spiky-haired blond the idea that she refused... until she spoke.

"Yes, Cloud. Of course I'll marry you!" she said, the tears in her eyes spilling over as she smiled and held out her left hand for Cloud to place the ring on as he smiled back and stood up. Sharing a quick kiss, the two turned their smiling faces to look at the audience they had as everyone around them clapped.

"About time, you pain-in-the-ass!" yelled a certain ninja princess teasingly from behind the bar counter.

"Took you long enough, nii-san!!" shouter Kanako from her position in Vincent's lap on the far side of the bar.

"More like it took him a month, Kana," smirked Kitara. That was when Cloud realized that she had read his mind and could possibly have told Tifa, but he highly doubted it if the look of pure shock and suprise on his now fiancee's face was any indication.

Nearly an hour and _several_ congratulations hugs and pats on the back later, Cloud and Tifa were sitting in their own booth, Tifa having given full authority behind the bar to Marlene despite much arguing from Yuffie. Both were smiling and talking quietly with each other as Tifa's head lay against Cloud's shoulder, both already trying to decide on things concerning their wedding. Until Kitara showed up, pushing a protesting Reno in front of her, that is.

"Kit-Kat! I already told ya I wanted to leave 'em alone, yo!" Reno whined, knowing he sounded pathetic and did not care so long as it got the girl to leave him alone.

"Oh, no you don't! You are going to see that I'm right if I have to superglue your flame-haired ass to the booth seat, Flames!" growled the eighteen-year-old before looking directly at her older brother and now soon-to-be sister-in-law. (Frankly, she thought it was about mother-fucking, goddamn _time_ Cloud popped the question to his childhood best friend.) "Cloud, would you kindly tell Reno that you are _not_ going to pummel him just because he danced with Tifa earlier tonight?"

Cloud blinked at his little sister, looking between her and the wanting-to-run-the-hell-away-and-hide-in-a-ditch-somewhere-for-the-rest-of-the-year redheaded Turk before smirking and staring directly at him.

"I'm not going to pummel him," he said, the smirk never leaving his face and only serving to heighten Reno's want more. "I'm going to put him the hospital for a half a year," he added in a fully serious voice. He knew that he had the intended effect on Reno when he saw the tension in the redhead's body and the look of _Oh... FUCK!_ on his face. Chuckling, Cloud told him he was kidding, making the Turk and the two females look at him like he was sick. "What? I can joke, too, you know."

"Yeah, but... you never joke like _that_, Cloud!" exclaimed an astonished Kitara, jaw hanging slightly slack. "You usually just make a dry crack or accidental joke like Vincent did just about somewhere between five and seven times during the Deepground shit last year!" Behind her, Vincent just gave Kit a look before Kanako drew his attention back to her.

"Okay, can we please get back to the fact that blondie just joked about putting me in the hospital?!" asked a still-tense Reno; the man looked like he was about ready to collapse from nerves and not wake up for a week.

"Relax, Reno. I'm not going to kill you for dancing with Tifa, let alone hurt you in any way," Cloud sighed with a shake of his head.

"There. See, Reno? You can stop acting like such chickenshit now," Kit smirked, whapping Reno upside the head as she did so. She was thankful that she had not envenomed Cloud by having Tifa and Reno dance together to get the chocobo-headed blond to _finally_ propose to the bartendress.

From a small corner in the room, two transparent figures stood and smiled upon Cloud.

"About time, Chocobo," the male said, turning to his female companion and nodding up. "We should probably get back before anyone goes berserk."

"You're right. But I'm happy he finally asked her," she responded.

Before either of them could leave, however, Kit had turned and spotted them. The girl teleported over, smiling at the two.

"About time you two showed up. How long have you been standing there?"

"Since Cloud asked Tifa to marry him," replied the woman with a gentle smile.

"That's what I thought. Well, merry christmas and happy holidays, Zack. Aerith." With a smile and a "hug," Kit left them to leave for the Lifestream again.

**FEAR THE SCENE CHANGE FONT OR ZACK WILL SCREAM **_**ZACK ATTACK!!**_** AND GLOMP YOU!!!!!!!!!**

Later that night, after all the guests left for their respective places of residence or stay for the holidays and everything had been cleaned up and put away inside the bar (Blood Skulls' equipment included), Tifa and Cloud headed up to the room they always shared hand-in-hand. They took a peak into the Denzel and Marlene's room to be sure the two children were asleep as Barret had told them two hours beforehand before entering their own. Sitting down on Tifa's bed, they looked around the room.

"Well, for one thing, I guess we can get rid of these," Cloud said, indicating their two separate beds. "I mean... why sleep in two separate beds when we're married?"  
Tifa giggled. "I know what you mean, Cloud. Anyone that does has to have their own reasons for doing so."

"Yeah..."

Silence lapsed between them for a few minutes before Tifa spoke up again.

"You know... Denzel and Marlene are asleep, Kit and Akihito 'mysteriously' rented a room at the inn for the night, and Kanako went with Vincent back to his own room at the inn." She looked suggestively at the blond next to her. "We could have a little holiday fun of our own, you know...."

"And if we wake the kids? What do you suggest we tell them if they come and ask why we're being so loud?"

"That all depends on whether or not you want me screaming, Cloud." With that, Tifa quickly leaned forward and pressed her lips to Cloud's, silencing any response he might have had to that statement. The two quickly found themselves making out on the bed like a pair of teenagers, their hands exploring each others bodies liesurely but with a purpose.

**FEAR THE SCENE CHANGE FONT OR ZACK WILL SCREAM **_**ZACK ATTACK!!**_** AND GLOMP YOU!!!!!!!!!**

Ten minutes later, when Denzel got up to use the bathroom, he was glad Kit had secretly soundproofed his and Marlene's room the week before school break.

* * *

1. Okay, I know that sounded lame. Bite me. I really don't care. I just wanted to get the point that Rude was flirting with a random female and that it was NOT a Turk. I've been reading Xenobia's fanfics recently and let's just say that she's got it stuck in my head that Rufus has to approve of his Turks dating outside of their little circle, soo... yeah. **(^-^;)**  
2. "Hikari" you better be happy I put you in here, girl!! Couldn't mention your revised character's love of Sephiroth, but... meh, I'll find a way to mention that in some other fanfic. XDD  
3. Yeah, this would be the same Johnny mentioned in the disclaimer back in chapter 1. Though, I sorta forgot where the hell I was originally going with that part of the disclaimer, soo.... yeah... **(^_^;)** Total fail right there. Just enjoy the chapter.  
4. This is explained in yet ANOTHER fanfic I started quite awhile ago (back on my account, but I think I took the story off...), but... Kit was infused with Mako and some Jenova cells by Hojo when she visited Cloud at ShinRa HQ. Kanako was, too, but not at the same time. Want more info on Kanako, either wait for me and H e a r tless to finish revising my FF7 mainstream fanfic or go ask her about Kanako yoursel.f

Kit: First off, the song "Ready to Fly" is sung by Richard Marx and is absolutely amazing and beautiful! I love it!! Also, "Spiraling Laguna" is just the fanfic name I came up with for Lacuna Coil; I figured that a coil was just a thing that spiraled around something and "Lacuna" sounded like "laguna"--which is Latin or something for lagoon--so I went with those words. **shrugs** Sorry that doesn't make sense to some, but it does to me, so deal with it. Anyways, OHMIGOD! IT'S FINISHED!! I FINALLY FINISHED THIS THING AFTER TWO FUCKING YEARS!!! DDDX Though, honestly, that ending was sorta difficult for me to write because... well... I've never actually written anything like that before!! I will admit to having started TWO DIFFERENT ATTEMPTS at lemons or refrences to lemons (one's gonna be a lemon the other's the latter of the two I just mentioned) and haven't gotten as far as I would like with either of them. Hell, THE ONE WAS MEANT TO HAVE ALREADY BEEN OUT BACK IN JUNE OF 2009! DDX Talk about fail right there. Once I get that damn thing finished, check it out. ...If you don't mind reading yaoi that is. **(^_^;)** Now then... Hope you all enjoyed this shitty little story of mine.  
Kanako: Aren't you forgetting something?  
Kit: GAH! Where the fuck did you come from!?  
Kanako: H e a r tless is in school right now and I'm bored of paying attention with her, so I came to visit you instead.  
Kit: **sighs** Whatever. Anyways... **realizes what Kanako just said** Wait... What did you just say? What do you mean I'm forgetting something?  
Kanako: How long is this story all together?  
Kit: Seven chapters. Why do you—? OH! RIGHT! THANKS, KANAKO!! OH MY GOSH, GUYS!! THIS IS THE FIRST MULTI-CHAPTER FIC I'VE WRITTEN THAT I'VE COMPLETED!!! I mean, I meant for my Teen Titans fanfic to have more chapters by now, but that didn't seem to work out. (Besides, I need to edit that thing anyway.) I'M SO FUCKING HAPPY RIGHT NOW!! **dancing around like an idiot** Alright, enough of that. PLEASE REVIEW EVERYONE!!! Hope you read or have read my other works, however shitty I may think they are!


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